We usually think that it is free will that gives meaning to life, but what if exactly the opposite is true, that the fact that we don’t have free will makes life meaningful? A couple of weeks ago Bernardo Kastrup, the executive director of the Essentia Foundation, wrote an essay (https://www.essentiafoundation.org/th…) arguing that, under objective idealism, the whole convulsiveness around free will is a meaningless red herring. In his opinion, the free will vs determinism debate misses the point, because fundamentally there is no distinction between nature’s will and what nature is necessitated to do. In other words: what we assume to be free will is, on a universal level, exactly the same as determinism. In this video ,Hans Busstra sits down with Bernardo Kastrup to discuss this line of reasoning while also trying to make it personal: why do we want free will so badly on a psychological level? Why, as a culture, do we usually associate determinism with nihilism and meaninglessness? The conversation covers Laplace’s Demon, computational irreducibility, and works towards Kastrup’s main point: if you can accept that, on a personal level, you don’t have free will, you realize that you are being ‘played’ by a universe that—due to computational irreducibility—cannot ‘see’ where it’s going before it goes. Instead of suffering as an effect of ‘bad’ free will decisions by human agents, suffering becomes part of the inevitable evolution of the universe
Category: Philosophy
Links to philosophy resources.
Matter and Desire with Andreas Weber
Could it be that our planet is not suffering primarily from a financial crisis, or even an ecological one, but from a critical lack of love? Andreas Weber asks a radical and challenging question. In speaking of love and of eroticism, Weber is not referring to sentimental feelings, but to a new basis for ontology itself, based on a mix of cutting-edge biological findings and philosophical insights. A German biologist and eco-philosopher, Weber delves deep into the continuity and connections between our bodies and those of all living beings. In this talk he will discuss his new book Matter and Desire: An Erotic Ecology. Written in the tradition of John Muir and Rachel Carson, the book weaves personal narrative and lyrical descriptions with a discussion of ecology and psychology, offering a new—and necessary—way to move through nature to ultimately achieve a heightened sense of self-awareness. The book is part of Weber’s larger project of developing an eco-philosophy—or as Weber calls it, a “biopoetics”—for the Anthropocene.
Gurdjieff in Armenia Documentary Film
A documentary on George Gurdjieff with Armenian sub-titles. Contains original and rare footage of the Gurdjieff movements and music from the 1920’s and covers the basis of his teaching in his own words. George Gurdjieff was born in 1867 in Gyumri (formerly Alexandropol) in Armenia. His father Ivan was Greek and his mother Yeva was Armenian. The film was made by Jean-Claude Lubtchansky, a close associate of Madame de Salzmann, with the support of the Gurdjieff Institute in France and is best viewed in full screen on a television or laptop. Osho described Gurdjieff as one of the most significant spiritual masters of this era and indeed this is a film well worth watching. Gurdjieff’s teaching is fully described in the book called “In Search of the Miraculous” which can be read at http://www.gurdjieff.am
CHASING BUDDHA — The award-winning documentary about Buddhist nun Venerable Robina Courtin
Honored at Sundance, featured in cinemas, on Australia’s SBS, and on television worldwide, this inspiring film launched Courtin-Wilson’s career when he was nominated for Best Documentary Director at the Australian Film Industry Awards in 2000. Australian ex-Catholic, ex-political activist and feminist, Venerable Robina Courtin has been a Buddhist nun since 1978. Teaching Buddhism around the world, she shatters the stereotype of a Buddhist nun, her intense and direct style leaving an indelible impression on everyone she meets. In the heart of America’s bible belt, Venerable Robina visits Kentucky State Penitentiary, guiding death row inmates and others on the path to enlightenment. Determined to harness their minds and deal with their violent crimes, they inspire Venerable Robina to work even harder at her own rigorous spiritual practice. Ven. Robina says: “I’m grateful to Amiel, my nephew, for his generosity these past ten years in donating 50% of all income from the sale of Chasing Buddha to my Bodhichitta Trust, which supports many worthy projects. Now he is kindly offering everyone access to the film here on YouTube.”
Fred Matser – interview during GAIA Action Tank 2022
Fred Matser is a Founder of Fred Foundation & Essentia Foundation A life-changing experience radically affected his vision on life, death, and the human condition, Fred uses insights gained from his intuition, to restore the dynamic balance and harmony in ourselves, between people and in nature. The interview was held on: 09.05.2022
THE INCONCEIVABLE REALM A visual introduction to Mahayana Buddhist Cosmology, with MC Owens
Buddhist cosmology is typically divided into two traditions, an early, abhidharma system, which has many similarities to traditional Indian cosmology, and a later Mahayana system that, while in dialogue with both those systems, is a unique tradition unto itself, with a truly inconceivable cosmology.
On January 31, 2020, M.C. Owens gave a visual presentation for the SFDC called Escape from Samsara ( • Escape from Samsa… ), introducing the original Buddhist view of the cosmos and general understandings about Time & Space within the Buddhist tradition. The Inconceivable Realm expands upon these ideas and goes into depth exploring one of the primary concepts of Mahayana Buddhist cosmology, the Trisāhasra-mahāsāhasra-lokadhātu (‘Three Thousand, Great Thousand World-System’) – the billion-fold holographic multiverse
A Joyful Mind | Meditation and Mindfulness Documentary
Today, the accelerating pace of life poses real challenges to our wellbeing. At the same time, new understandings about meditation are shedding light on how its transformative powers can improve our daily lives. A Joyful Mind pulls back the curtain on what it means to meditate, on what modern science reveals about its benefits, and on how meditation and mindfulness can be used in workplaces and schools. This groundbreaking film serves to clear up the confusion around meditation perpetuated by the media. It features the experiences of both novice and master meditators, highlighting Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche, whose teachings have touched people around the world with their clarity, wit and personal insight into how meditation can have a positive impact on our daily lives.
The Biggest Ideas in Philosophy
MINIMALISM: Official Netflix Documentary (Entire Film)
MINIMALISM: A DOCUMENTARY ABOUT THE IMPORTANT THINGS examines the simple lives of minimalists from all walks of life–families, entrepreneurs, architects, artists, journalists, scientists, and even a former Wall Street broker—all of whom are living meaningfully with less.
The Beginnings of this Universe – How Our Virtual Reality and the System Evolved
Tom suspects that the Larger Consciousness System (LCS) was still in the process of growing up while our virtual reality was already being inhabited by us, the Individuated Units of Consciousness. This may explain why there is a such a stark contrast in the God of the Old Testament versus the New Testament. Old mythological tales may have some truth to them, as the rules and interference done by the LCS was much different in the past versus the present.